(151d) Szorb Sulfur Removal Technology-a Solution of Tier 3

S Zorb(TM) Sulfur Removal Technology is very different from what is commonly known as the Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) Technologies. What distinguishes S Zorb(TM) SRT from the rest of the commercially available gasoline desulfurization technologies (all are the HDS type) is what matters most to all refiners. As the environmental regulations require lower and lower sulfur content in the gasoline products, most HDS users find themselves needing to spend more capital for upgrading the existing HDS units, taking a hit on lost production due to unit down time, and suffering from additional operating cost due to further loss in Octane Number and liquid yield. The need for more high purity hydrogen would strain further the always tight hydrogen supply situation which is common in most refineries. With S ZorbTM SRT, this can be avoided by designing a unit that will meet your ultimate needs while you operate the unit in an optimal mode for your current needs.

 The main chemical reactions in the S Zorb SRT Reactor are sulfur adsorption, olefin hydrogenation, and olefin hydroisomerization. Sorbent regeneration and reduction occur in the Regenerator and Reducer.

Compare to other technologies, SZORB SRT has following advantages: 

i. Low octane loss
Our proprietary sorbent helps minimize olefin saturation. By using unique catalytic chemistry, the sulfur is adsorbed from the hydrocarbon rather than released by traditional hydrogenolysis. The sorbent also promotes olefin hydroisomerization, which helps counter octane loss that occurs from olefin hydrogenation. In some cases, it can lead to an overall gain in octane.

ii. Very low volume loss
The S ZorbTM SRT process has very low volumetric losses, and does not trade octane gain for volumetric loss.

iii. Sulfur removal to 10 ppm and lower (from >1000 ppm feed sulfur in one step!)
If your goal is to meet a 30 ppm average product sulfur, our technology can help you achieve this. However, the S ZorbTM SRT process can also help you plan for the future, and for most gasoline feeds, our process can achieve product sulfur levels less then 10 ppm.

iv. Low hydrogen consumption
The S ZorbTM SRT technology has lower hydrogen consumption than hydrotreating, which lowers operating costs and makes hydrogen supplies available for other uses.

v. Ability to use low purity hydrogen
High purity hydrogen is not a requirement for the S ZorbTM SRT process, and our process can operate with low hydrogen purities.

vi. Run lengths to match FCC operations
Because the sorbent catalyst is continuously regenerated, the Reactor activity is stable and does not decrease like fixed-bed, hydrotreating processes. The S ZorbTM SRT process is designed to match the run lengths of FCC units.

vii. Does not require fractionation of FCC stream
If you have an existing fractionator for your FCC naphtha, the S ZorbTM SRT process will treat the heavy or light stream. If you do not have a fractionator, the S ZorbTM SRT will treat the entire naphtha stream. If you have an existing fractionator but would like to employ it for some other use, we can design your unit to treat the combined stream.

viii. Low operating costs
After including costs associated with run length, octane loss, volume loss, and general operating parameters, S ZorbTM SRT technology has comparatively low operating costs.

ix. Competitive capital costs
You might expect a fluidized bed reactor and associated regeneration equipment to add significant capital expenses. Surprisingly, they do not. Conventional metallurgy, low operating pressures, and high space velocities help minimize equipment costs.